Our training philosophy is based upon the foundations of Strength, Mobility and Nutrition . From our first class gym facility at The Health Hub near Bury St Edmunds, we can show you how to integrate this into your training and your life.

By Stuart Turner, Dec 22 2017 01:00PM

How to train at Christmas time

During the festive period there is often a lot of competition for your time and energy, and more often than not getting to the gym or doing some exercise is substitiuted for other more desirable activities involving mulled wine and minced pies.

However all is not lost, here are a few tips to keep a healthy balance during this period.

1. Get the family involved – Christmas is a great time to spend with family and friends so why not meet up at the park and throw a ball around or go for a workout or swim. Catching up for a coffee after a few lengths in the pool kills two birds with one stone.

2. Dump the kids with family – when family are about make the most of it and sneak a bit of me time. I’m sure grandparents, aunts and uncles will love to have the little ones for an hour. In my experience its best not to overuse this one.

3. Get outside – use your holiday time to get out and run/jog or walk. Just be sure to warm up properly and build up slowly. No-one wants to spend Christmas day injured because you decided on a half marathon after months of inactivity.

4. Clear the head – a lot of gyms are open early in the morning and there is no better way to clear the Christmas party hangover than an hour in the gym. It takes some motivation but once it’s done you’ll feel much better.

5. Schedule cleverly – This ones the boring one, book yourself some time to train. Work it into your day and put it on the calendar. It’s amazing how easy it is to find an hour if you plan in advance, and similarly how easy it is to get to the end of a week off and find you haven’t found time to exercise.

6. Sack it all off and start again in January – If all else fails and you really can’t train over the festive period then don’t panic. It is only a week or so and you won’t get that out of shape…….surely. However make a plan, set a date or make an appointment with a personal trainer for your return. Don’t let a week off turn into 2 or 3.

Most of all enjoy yourself – life’s short and Christmas doesn’t happen everyday.

By Stuart Turner, Jul 25 2017 07:50AM

When it comes to weight loss or fat loss there is tendency among some of us to view the body in simple terms of calories in vs calories out. “If you want to lose weight - cut your calories”. To a point that is true, and it will work. But at what cost?

Imagine this scenario, you decide it’s time to lose weight so you go on a diet. You have intentions to exercise and decide to join the gym and do cardio for an hour every day. You stick to the plan and weight gradually starts to come off, but then after a while, it stops and no matter what you do the scales don’t budge any further.

Now what? You can’t cut calories further as you’re only on 1200 a day as it is. So you add a bit more exercise – 2 hours walking a day or perhaps an hour on the elliptical thingy at the gym. Yes that’s got it, weight loss again – success. Now let’s fast forward 3 months after the diet is over, what’s happened? The weight is back on plus a little bit more and we’re back to the beginning of the cycle.

Sound familiar? So looking at the above example what is actually happening to your body?

At the start you reduce calories which means your body will burn some of the excess fat it has as fuel. Perfect. However it soon gets used to only having 1200 kcal per day and starts to become more efficient both at rest and during your cardio workouts. You may have heard of something called metabolism, this is the term for all the chemical reactions in your body sometimes referred to as your base metabolic rate or BMR.

Having cut your calorie intake the body also cuts back on some of its energy expenditure, this reduces your metabolism, which at this point isn’t noticeable but as the weight loss slows or stops altogether it becomes very important.

At the end of your diet you may have lost a stone but you’ve also dropped your metabolism through the floor. This is the reason that so many of those that diet and lose weight will also put it back on again a few months after dieting.

What can we do about it?

There are certain things that affect your metabolism that you can’t change such as gender, genetics and age. But there are some ways we can increase your metabolism. Here are a few.

1. Eat plenty of protein with every meal – protein takes more energy for your body to break down and so increases your BMR.

2. Train with heavy weights – Training with weights has been proven to increase your metabolism way after the session has ended. But train heavy or there is little to be gained.

3. Do HIIT training - similar to the above HIIT training has been proven to increase metabolism way after the session has finished. The key word however is intensity. Pick 3 or 4 big exercises and create a circuit. 40 seconds of each exercise then 40 seconds rest. Repeat 8 times.

By Stuart Turner, Feb 4 2015 03:46PM

If you're interested in having Better Posture, More Energy, Better Recovery from an Injury, Pain Free Movement, Less Stress, Reduced Fatigue or Greater Concentration ... lifting weights really will help!

If you spend hours in the gym doing cardio work you will no doubt lose some weight, but will those South facing elements start heading north? Probably not ... You need to lift weights! Lifting weights can and will change your body shape. By lifting weights you can build muscle in specific places, so if you want tighter abs and a firmer bum then lifting weights is the best option. And don't worry, you won't end up looking like the worlds strongest man and you'll still burn calories - if you train right you can burn a lot more with weights.

Being stronger helps prevent injury - experts estimate that as many as 80% of people will have back pain at some point in their lives. I'm willing to bet that a large proportion of these could be reduced if they were stronger in the right areas. The same could be said for knees, hips, shoulders etc. Obviously this is a very simplistic view and the human body is more complicated than that. But if you're weak you have more chance of getting injured. So it's better to be strong.

Lifting weights will help with fat loss - the intensity of a full body circuit training session can be considerably more than a steady cardio session on a treadmill or cross trainer. You'll also have a higher post workout calorie burn as well so it's win, win. Although the effect of this is often exaggerated, muscle will increase your metabolism and therefore you will burn more calories at rest.

And what's more - lifting weights will guard against osteoporosis. The simple act of lifting will encourage your bones to get stronger, and you'll have better balance from exercising so won't fall over anyway

What you may want to know ...

How much weight should I lift and how often?

Try and lift 2-3 times per week to start with, and you should aim to lift as heavy as you can with good technique. If you are unsure about your technique please ask me in the gym, even if you don't train with me normally I am always willing to advise.

Isn't it dangerous?

Not with the correct exercise selection and technique. You can ask me or one of the gym instructors to show you the correct technique - it's amazing how easy it is once you know how.

Won't it make me too bulky?

Nope, cakes make you bulky. Lifting weights helps you get lean and strong. You will just need to be working on the right areas, let me know what you want to achieve and I can point you in the right direction.

Will it make me ache?

Probably! If you do it right then yes it may ache a little after a few days, but this will quickly pass as your body adapts and strengthens. No pain no gain and all that jazz!

Will I see results quickly?

Yes you should be able to see a noticeable change in body shape within a couple of months. You will feel better and stronger a lot sooner than this too.

By Stuart Turner, Jan 21 2015 03:13PM

Dehydration makes you tired and slow - one of the things that happens when you don't get enough water is the blood flow and enzyme function in your body slows down leaving your body tired and fatigued. This slowing down of your metabolism makes losing weight much harder. No one wants to be tired and slow, and often its dehydration that's to blame. So rather than always grabbing a sugar fix or a coffee, water should be your go to pick me up.

Being dehydrated can make you eat more - when your thirsty you don't feel as full and therefore are more likely to eat more food. When in fact a glass of water will quench your thirst as well as make you feel fuller. Water has been a mainstay in every diet ever invented, we don't need to reinvent the wheel here, drink water, it works.

Water has zero calories - I've said this many times before, when you are trying to lose weight, don't drink your calories. A large part of people's calorie intake is often through beverages, this one change can make a massive difference. One glass of wine; 160 kcals, coke 140 kcals, beer 180 kcals.......water 0 kcals.

Hydrated skin looks younger, less wrinkled and more attractive - another no brainer, do you want to look young and healthy? Then drink more water. Being under hydrated for a length of time can leave your skin looking withered and old as it lacks the fluids. Expensive moisturisers are very good at keeping moisture in the skin but no amount of creams and lotions will help if your not drinking enough water in the first place.

Muscle and joint stiffness and strength - without adequate water your muscles are slower to receive oxygen that they need to work optimally, this leaves you tired and weak when exercising. Don't waste your money on sports drinks, for your daily workouts, water is just fine. It also eases muscle stiffness and joint pain, if you have a bad back or are a bit sore from your last workout, make sure your fully hydrated as dehydration makes it worse.

How much is enough? There are many recommendations out there.... 8 glasses, 2 litres, 3 litres, one ounce per pound of bodyweight??? All very confusing, my advice is to aim for 2.5 to 3 litres of total fluids per day.

Drinking more water is a really easy way to feel better, look better, move better, get better and generally be better. Your body is made up of about 60% water and you need to replenish these stocks to let your body function optimally. Below are 5 really cool facts about water and your health.